Fire after a mast year triggers mass recruitment of slender mulga (<i>Acacia aptaneura</i>), a desert shrub with heat‐stimulated germination

Wright, Boyd R.; Fensham, R. J.

doi:10.3732/ajb.1700008

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 74 publications

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“…It has also been noted that for some species the proximate causes triggering masting are also associated with an increased probability of natural fire disturbance, for example, stand aging and dead fuel accumulation in bamboo (Keeley & Bond, ), dry and hot spells in Norway spruce (Selås et al, ), European beech (Ascoli et al, ) and Dipterocarpaceae (Williamson & Ickes, ), or heavy rains followed by warm periods in Triodia spp. (Wright et al, ) and Acacia aptaneura (Wright & Fensham, ). Most of these authors have suggested that this positive feedback supports the ‘Environmental prediction hypothesis’ for mast seeding (Piovesan & Adams, ), which postulates the existence of traits that benefit plants in timing their seed crops using environmental cues to ‘predict’ which years will be favourable for seedling establishment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A few studies in fire‐prone regions of Australia found that seed production in grass and shrub species displaying heat stimulated seed germination ( Triodia spp. and Acacia aptaneura , respectively) was strongly related to increased fire likelihood in the 24 months after the reproduction event (Wright & Fensham, ; Wright et al, ). Similarly to our results for white spruce, in these studies the same climate cue (precipitation in previous months) was responsible for both the induction of flowering and the increase of burnt area, due to fuel build‐up and improved fuel connectivity after moist years.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Climate teleconnections synchronizePicea glaucamasting and fire disturbance: Evidence for a fire‐related form of environmental prediction

et al. 2019

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1. Synchronous pulses of seed masting and natural disturbance have positive feedbacks on the reproduction of masting species in disturbance-prone ecosystems.We test the hypotheses that disturbances and proximate causes of masting are correlated, and that their large-scale synchrony is driven by similar climate teleconnection patterns at both inter-annual and decadal time scales.2. Hypotheses were tested on white spruce (Picea glauca), a masting species which surprisingly persists in fire-prone boreal forests while lacking clear fire adaptations. We built masting, drought and fire indices at regional (Alaska, Yukon, Alberta, Quebec) and sub-continental scales (western North America) spanning the second half of the 20th century. Superposed Epoch Analysis tested the temporal associations between masting events, drought and burnt area at the regional scale. At the sub-continental scale, Superposed Epoch Analysis tested whether El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and its coupled effects with the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) in the positive phase (AMO+/ENSO+) synchronize drought, burnt area and masting. We additionally tested the consistency of our synchronization hypotheses on a decadal temporal scale to verify whether long-term oscillations in AMO+/ENSO+ are coherent to decadal variation in drought, burnt area and masting.3. Analyses demonstrated synchronicity between drought, fire and masting. In all regions the year before a mast event was drier and more fire-prone than usual.During AMO+/ENSO+ events sub-continental indices of drought and burnt area experienced significant departures from mean values. The same was observed for large-scale masting in the subsequent year, confirming 1-year lag between fire and masting. Sub-continental indices of burnt area and masting showed in-phase | 1187Journal of Ecology ASCOLI et AL. | 1189Journal of Ecology ASCOLI et AL.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate teleconnections synchronizePicea glaucamasting and fire disturbance: Evidence for a fire‐related form of environmental prediction

et al. 2019

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“…In most other regions where the environment is under the influence of major climate modes, there is evidence that ecosystem processes respond to them, and it will be interesting to see how often that results in an alignment between drivers of seed production and other ecosystem processes improving reproductive fitness. For example, negative phases of ENSO, Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and Southern Annular Mode (SAM) concurrently modulate rainfall in central Australia, with direct effects on the productivity [59] and seed output [86][87][88][89] of mulga (Acacia sp.) and spinifex (Triodia sp.)…”

Section: Climate Modes Drive Synergies Between Masting and Reproductive Fitness Of Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modes of climate variability bridge proximate and evolutionary mechanisms of masting

Ascoli

Hacket‐Pain

Pearse

et al. 2021

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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There is evidence that variable and synchronous reproduction in seed plants (masting) correlates to modes of climate variability, e.g. El Niño Southern Oscillation and North Atlantic Oscillation. In this perspective, we explore the breadth of knowledge on how climate modes control reproduction in major masting species throughout Earth's biomes. We posit that intrinsic properties of climate modes (periodicity, persistence and trends) drive interannual and decadal variability of plant reproduction, as well as the spatial extent of its synchrony, aligning multiple proximate causes of masting through space and time. Moreover, climate modes force lagged but in-phase ecological processes that interact synergistically with multiple stages of plant reproductive cycles. This sets up adaptive benefits by increasing offspring fitness through either economies of scale or environmental prediction. Community-wide links between climate modes and masting across plant taxa suggest an evolutionary role of climate variability. We argue that climate modes may ‘bridge’ proximate and ultimate causes of masting selecting for variable and synchronous reproduction. The future of such interaction is uncertain: processes that improve reproductive fitness may remain coupled with climate modes even under changing climates, but chances are that abrupt global warming will affect Earth's climate modes so rapidly as to alter ecological and evolutionary links. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The ecology and evolution of synchronized seed production in plants’.

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“…are triggered by heavy rainfall. This also promotes vegetation growth and increases fuel loads and connectivity across the landscape, increasing the likelihood of fires in temporal proximity with a masting event (figure 3) [43,44].…”

Section: (B) Indirect Interactionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Natural disturbances and masting: from mechanisms to fitness consequences

Vacchiano

Pesendorfer

Conedera

et al. 2021

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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The timing of seed production and release is highly relevant for successful plant reproduction. Ecological disturbances, if synchronized with reproductive effort, can increase the chances of seeds and seedlings to germinate and establish. This can be especially true under variable and synchronous seed production (masting). Several observational studies have reported worldwide evidence for co-occurrence of disturbances and seed bumper crops in forests. Here, we review the evidence for interaction between disturbances and masting in global plant communities; we highlight feedbacks between these two ecological processes and posit an evolutionary pathway leading to the selection of traits that allow trees to synchronize seed crops with disturbances. Finally, we highlight relevant questions to be tested on the functional and evolutionary relationship between disturbances and masting. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The ecology and evolution of synchronized seed production in plants’.

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Fire after a mast year triggers mass recruitment of slender mulga (Acacia aptaneura), a desert shrub with heat‐stimulated germination

Cited by 10 publications

References 74 publications

Climate teleconnections synchronizePicea glaucamasting and fire disturbance: Evidence for a fire‐related form of environmental prediction

Climate teleconnections synchronizePicea glaucamasting and fire disturbance: Evidence for a fire‐related form of environmental prediction

Modes of climate variability bridge proximate and evolutionary mechanisms of masting

Natural disturbances and masting: from mechanisms to fitness consequences

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